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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



TWO SERMONS. 



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REV. A. B,' EARLE, D. D. 

Author of "The Morning Hour," " Bringing in Sheaves,** 
"The Rest of Faith/^ etc. 



^ hy And they went forth and preached every where.^iWar^ l6 : 20, 



r%/^ j/He that winneth souls is wise. — Ps. 11:30, 



1 ' ■ l^y'^- A 



BOSTO:^:^ 
JAMES H. EARLE, PUBLISHER, 
178 Washington Street. 
1884. 



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^3e Library 

<->^ Congress 

Washington 



Copyright, 1884, 
Bv James H. Earlb, 



TO THE READER. 



f^ AM now seventy-two years of age ; have 
a preached fifty-three years; held union 
meetings with twenty-two denominations ; 
preached twenty thousand six hundred 
and sixty-five times, and hope to preach 
ten years longer. 

In compliance with the wish of many 
friends, 1 have selected two familiar 
sermons, the one preached as my twenty- 
thousandth sermon ; the other at eleven 
o'clock, watch-night, Dec. 31, 1883, and 
send them, as far as I am able, to all 
who have labored with me in Revival 
Work^ and to others who may read them 
as my Frie7idly Greeting, May the Holy 
Spirit accompany them ! 

A. B. EARLE. 

Nciutoity Mass.^ Jt^itey J8S4. 



TWO SERMONS. 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 



"If I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy." 

Ps. 137 : 6. 

[O one could persuade himself that 
these pious Jews referred simply 
to having a home in the city of Jeru- 
salem. There must have been some 
other attraction that rendered the city 
so dear to them. The very name sug- 
gested to them the Divine presence. 
In Ezekiel 48 135, God has given the 
city a name full of tender memories : 
"The name of the city from that day 



8 SERMON. 



shall be, The Lord is there/' This 
was the attraction, no doubt. 

No place so dear to them, as the 
place where God's honor dwelt. No 
place where God had so often revealed 
Himself and shown them His glory, 
as in that city 

I propose to place the word Church 
in this text where Jerusalem stands, 
and read it, '' I prefer the Church of 
God above my chief joy.'* 

Not any one denomination, but the 
people of God, using the word in the 
same sense that the martyr Stephen 
did in Acts 7:38, "This is He that 
was in the Church in the wilder- 
ness.'' 

This allusion was not to a denomi- 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED, 9 

nation, but to the people and cause 
of God in the wilderness. 

Using the word in this broad sense, 
I purpose to state a few reasons why 
we should prefer and love the Church 
more than we love anything else in 
this world. More than we love par- 
ents or children, husband or wife, 
property or pleasure, or even life 
itself, next to our Redeemer 

Has Done More. 

The Church has done more, and is 
now doing more, for this world, than 
all other organizations united. The 
Church is the strong basis on which 
all permanent reforms must rest for 
support. It is the light of the wolrd, 



lO SERMON. 



he salt of the earth, the great wheel 
in the basement. 

Forty or fifty years ago, a temper- 
ance society was formed, that ignored 
the Bible and prayer in their meet- 
ings. Their motto was, *^Away with 
the Bible, away with prayer from our 
meetings. We are going to reform 
the world.'' But did they reform the 
world 1 The organization was a mere 
rocket, that exploded and went out in 
sparks, for the want of a basis to 
rest upon. So it has been, and so it 
will be, till time ends. All reforms 
that do not rest on the Bible and 
Christianity as a basis, must come 
to naught. 

Paul wrote to Timothy that he 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. II 

might ''know how to behave himself 
in the house of God, which is the 
Church of the living God, the pillar 
and ground of the truth." 

Pillars are used to sustain heavy 
burdens. When Samson removed the 
two main pillars upon which that im- 
mense flat roof rested, the whole build- 
ing fell, causing the death of a great 
number of Philistines. So the Church 
is God's great burden-bearer. 

Missionary Societies. 

Every missionary society seeking the 
salvation of men, has had its origin 
in the Church. These societies have 
usually originated in small prayer- 
meetings, or with a few Christians 



12 SERMON. 



while looking over the wants of the 
world. God says of the Church, ''All 
my springs are in thee/' Like our 
great rivers which can be traced to 
some small spring. 

Who has not admired the beautiful 
Susquehanna River near its outlet } 
There it is, deep, broad, and majestic, 
with large vessels on its bosom. But 
as we trace its crooked course among 
the Pennsylvania hills, winding our 
way through the State of New York, 
until we reach the village of Coopers- 
town, — near that village is a little clus- 
ter of springs. There is the origin of 
this great river. So the Bible and mis- 
sionary societies through the Church of 
Christ started from small beginnings. 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED, 13 

One of these organizations, now 
sending its saving power to the ends 
of the earth, preaching Christ to mil- 
lions of lost men, had its origin with 
thirteen members, starting with thir- 
teen dollars in the treasury. 

I found, in Oregon and Nevada, 
great shafts extending from this par- 
ent society. To these were attached 
cogs, and pulleys, and wheels, all 
moved by the organization at home ; 
like an immense factory with its 
looms and spindles, employing thou- 
sands of laborers, with one great 
wheel in the basement moving them 
all 

The Church is that great wheel in 
the basement, which under the mighty 



14 SERMON. 



Spirit is moving the moral machinery 
of the world. 

Every Minister. 

The Church has furnished every one 
of Christ's ministers now on the walls 
of Zion, or in the great missionary 
field, *^ bringing in the sheaves." With- 
draw the entire ministry of God from 
their great work, and a mighty arm of 
reform is taken away. The Church 
has translated, and is translating, the 
Bible into all languages, and is giving 
it to all nations. What should we do 
without the Bible } And what would 
the earth be without it } 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 15 

Financially. 

The Church has done more, finan- 
cially, for this world than everything 
else. Some people complain that it 
costs so much to build meeting-houses, 
and support ministers. But look at it 
for a moment. Suppose a decree 
should come forth from God, that not 
a minister, or Christian, or house of 
worship, should ever be found within 
fifty miles of this place. How much 
would property be worth here } Who 
would wish to live here } We should 
see what I saw in Charleston, S. C, 
soon after the late war. Inside the 
windows of those beautiful homes, 
worth from ^5000 to $50,000 each, this 



1 6 SERMON. 



notice, **To Let/' *^To Let/^ So it 

would be here, and everywhere else, 
without Christianity and the Bible. 
Much as it costs to build meeting- 
houses and support ministers, we have 
more than every dollar we have paid 
out, in the enhanced value of our 
property. 

Jacob's father-in-law got hold of this 
great truth in his day. After Jacob 
had served 14 years for his two wives, 
he said to his father, he must go to 
his kindred. But his father made it 
an object for him to remain another 
year ; and changing his wages again 
and again, kept him, in all, twenty 
years, then gave as a reason for 
keeping him so long, that '' God had 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED, I? 

dealt well with him '' on Jacob's ac- 
count. 

How true to the life this has been 
and is still, to the ends of the earth! 
Some of these husbands, when you 
decided to marry, selected a pious, 
godly young lady to share your joys 
and sorrows. You showed good judg- 
ment in the selection if she was will- 
ing to be united for life with an 
unconverted man. But after a while 
she said gently, ''Husband, it is lonely 
on communion-days to have you ab- 
sent ; and besides, our children are 
growing up, and ought to hear their 
father's voice in prayer." But you 
finally said, ''My wife, if we are going 
to live pleasantly together, you must 



1 8 SERMON. 



not talk to me so much about reli- 
gion. Have your religion, but don't 
talk to me about it.*' You silenced 
her. Yet when you went to the office, 
or store, or bank, she was in her 
closet, saying, "O God, take care of 
my husband ; protect and keep him 
in his business.*' Her prayer was the 
lightning-rod that drew off the red 
cloud of wrath that hung over your 
head. Little do you know how much 
you owe to those prayers. Won't you 
say to her to-day, "I will never 
speak unkindly to you again about 
religion" } 

God spares a family, a town, a 
country, because He has redeemed 
ones in it. He would spare Sodom 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 1 9 

and Gomorrah if ten righteous men 
could be found in them. So that the 
Church, faulty as it is, has done 
more, and is now doing more, for this 
world than all other organizations put 
together, and for this reason should 
be preferred and cherished. 

"Lord, Thy Church is still Thy dwelling, 
Still is precious in Thy sight; 
Judah's temple far excelling, 
Beaming with the gospel's light." 

The Mother of All. 

The Church is the mother of all re- 
deemed souls. *^ Jerusalem which is 
from above, is free, which is the 
mother of us all.'' Not a part of 
Christ's children, but of them all 



20 SERMON, 



Far distant be the day when I 
speak ill of my mother. I think I 
should love and venerate my mother, 
if there were rum-blotches on her 
face. What if she has faults ? She 
is my mother, with all her faults. 
She gave me birth, and nursed and 
cared for me, when I was weak and 
helpless. Now, when I am grown to 
be a man, shall I forget or neglect 
her 1 How soon a man sinks himself 
in the esteem of his neighbors, who 
goes about speaking ill of his mother, 
or neglects her ! 

The Church is my spiritual mother. 
I was born into the kingdom of 
Christ through her pains and soul- 
travail. She baptized and nursed me 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 21 

when I was too weak to render her 
much help. If I have done the 
Church but little good, she has done 
me a world of good. Let no re- 
deemed one speak ill of his spiritual 
mother, although she has so many 
faults. 

Christ's Bride. 

The Church is Christ's bride. He 
has betrothed her to Himself forever. 
He says even to the backsliding Chris- 
tian, " Return, ye backsliding daughter, 
for I am married unto thee.'' I am 
amazed at His choice. It is more 
surprising to me, than it would have 
been if Prince Albert had passed by 
the queen, and all the royal families, 
and proposed marriage to a girl in a 



22 SERMON. 



country poorhouse, paying her bills, 
clothing and educating her, then uni- 
^ting with her in marriage. Would 
not every one have been surprised at 
his choice ? Look at Christ's choice 
for* a bride. Passing by the higher 
order of beings (the fallen angels), 
that sinned before we did, and fixing 
His eternal love on this poorhouse 
world. He found His bride owing ten 
thousand talents, and with nothing to 
pay. He took her in her rags and 
pollution, paid her debts, clothed, and 
educated her. 

How wonderful this choice! But it 
is His choice. The love between 
Christ and His bride is a reciprocal 
love. He loved her and died for her, 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED, 23 

and she loved Him well enough to 
die for Him. She has done it, and 
will do it again if necessary. 

There is a sense in which every 
soul is married to Christ at conver- 
sion, and yet, in a grander sense, 
*the marriage ceremony is yet to come 
off. His betrothed bride is now sing- 
ing, as she waits for that day: — 

" O, what wonder ! How amazing I 
Jesus, glorious King of Kings, 
Deigns to call me His beloved ; 
Let me rest beneath His wings." 

I understand the Divine order to 
be this : When Christ's bride is ready, 
so that she can say, ^^Amen, even 
so come, Lord Jesus!" then Christ 
will descend to a point overhead, with 



24 SERMON. 



the virgin angels, and all those who 
will have reached Heaven before with 
Him. The saints then living on the 
earth will undergo a change equiva- 
lent to death, and be caught up to 
meet those who had gone before, with 
the Heavenly Bridegroom among them. 
Then, by the light of the world on 
fire, the grand marriage ceremony 
will take place. The angels have a 
set piece to sing, only suitable to 
sing on that occasion. I do not 
know the tune, — I shall know that 
when I hear it, — but the words I 
know now. They are these: — ''Let us 
rejoice and be glad, for the marriage 
of the Lamb is come, and His wife 
has made herself ready.'* At that 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 2$ 

time all the redeemed will receive 
their resurrected bodies. None before, 
none afterward. This change will take 
place in a moment, in the twinkling 
of an eye, when the trumpet shall 
sound. No doubt Abraham, with all 
the saints in Heaven, are looking for- 
ward to that day with great interest. 
Then, for a ^ little time, the palace 
chamber, Heaven, will be vacated. 
For aught we know, all the saints and 
angels then in Heaven will go forth 
with the Bridegroom to celebrate His 
marriage. Then I think Christ will 
take His bride to His Father's, — to 
her palace chamber, her many-man- 
sioned home, where the Father will 
give Him a grand reception, with His 



26 SERMON, 



bride, in all her beauty, leaning on 
His arm. 

Then this marriage song can be 
sung : — 

"Ascend, beloved, to the joy, 
The festal day has come; 
To-day the Lamb doth feast His own, 
To-day He with His bride sits down. 
To-day puts on the spousal crown 
In the great upper room." 

Live with Them. 

One more reason why we should 
love the Church more than we love 
anything else. Among all that we 
love and esteem on earth, pre-emi- 
nently above them all, should stand 
the Church of the Living God, because 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED, 2/ 

we expect to live with the Church 
forever. 

No one expects to Hve with husband 
or wife, parent or children, or earthly 
friends, long. More than one of us 
know the bitter import of those tender 
words of Andrew Fuller : 

" There once did live a heart that cared for me, 
I loved and was again beloved in turn. 
Hei' tender soul would soothe my rising grief, 
And wipe my tears and mix them with her own. 
But she is not, and I am left to weep unheeded, 
And to serve alone." 

Let me urge all to make the most 
of each other's society, for it must be 
short. But with the Church we expect 
to live forever. If we are to live 
with the people of God forever, how 



28 SERMON. 



important that we love them ! It 
would be hell enough to be united in 
marriage, even for a short life, with 
a person we did not love. But to 
live with Christians eternally, and yet 
not love them, would be an intolera- 
ble hell. 

We should suffer more than a man 
did on a certain river. He had plen- 
ty of mioney, and was really having a 
drunken spree ; not in the gutter, but 
having what he called a good time. 
Hearing the bell ring on a steamer, 
he stepped on board and was soon 
sailing on its proud waters. But hear- 
ing beautiful singing on the forepart 
of the vessel, he inquired of the cap- 
tain what singing he had on board, 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 2g 

and was answered, ** Sabbath - school 
singing, sir/' *' Sabbath -school," said 
he. ''Is this not such a steamer?'* 
**Not at all," was the reply. ''Cap- 
tain," he said, "you must set me on 
shore, if it costs me twenty dollars. 
I had as soon be in hell as to hear 
this Sabbath-school singing." 

Suppose this man had been taken 
into heaven at once, and on the first 
minute after his arrival there, Abra- 
ham, and Moses, and the heavenly 
ones had commenced singing, " Glory 
to the Lamb ! Glory to the Lamb ! 
Our sins are washed away in the 
blood of the Lamb." The poor man 
would have inquired, " Are there none 
but Christians here ? I never loved 



30 



SERMON, 



Christians. I have never known the 
Lamb/' There is no place where he 
would suffer more than he would 
among the redeemed, without love to 
them. It would be cruelty on the 
part of God to keep a man in heaven 
that did not love the Church above 
his chief joy. So important is this 
love to the people of God, that it is 
marked in the Bible as one of the 
clearest evidences of a change of heart. 
"We know that we have passed from 
death unto life, because we love the 
brethren.'' None could be happy in 
Heaven, however moral and correct in 
life, without this change in his affec- 
tions. How important, then, that we 
possess the spirit of this text; that 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED, 3 1 

we become sure we prefer Jerusalem 
above our chief joy, so that we can 
say, — 

"Beyond my highest joy, 

I prize her heavenly ways; 
Her sweet communion, solemn vows, 

Her hymns of love and praise.'* 

Let US inquire, in the light of this 
subject, how one will act if he loves 
the Church more than anything else? 

Will Unite with Them. 

If he prefers the Church above his 
chief joy, he will seek the first oppor- 
tunity to unite with them. One of 
the first inquiries will be, *^When will 
there be an opportunity for me to 
unite with this Church } I desire to 



32 SERMON. 



obey Christ in his ordinances/* Christ 
says, John 14:23: ''If a man love me 
he will keep my words.'* He will 
wish to obey Christ. The spirit of 
obedience will govern him. He may 
make mistakes, but will obey Christ 
in all things as far as he understands 
His will. It is a bad symptom when 
a man claims to be a Christian, and 
yet neglects the ordinances of the 
gospel. I am afraid of that hope that 
does not lead its possessor to a strict 
obedience to Christ's commands, as 
far as he understands them. 

Do I address any one whose letter 
is in your trunk at home } Or did 
you come away without your letter of 
dismission ; and yet have lived here • 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 33 

three or six months ? If you love 
Christ you will send for your letter 
at once. If you have lost your Church 
relation, will you not confess your 
way back, and live with the people of 
God? You will do this if you ^^ pre- 
fer Jerusalem above your chief joy." 
Obedience to Christ's commands is 
one of the evidences of a renewed 
heart. 

Share tpie Burdens. 

We shall wish to share the burdens 
of the Church if we love it. One of 
the first inquiries will be, ^^ Have we 
enough to make out our Pastor's sal- 
ary } If not, double m.y subscription." 
So about the place of worship. And 
so about everything pertaining to 



34 SERMON, 



Christ's cause. He will not do as a 
rich church-member did where I was 
holding meetings. The Church sus- 
tained preaching among them by an 
average ; that is, each one paid accord- 
ing to his means. This brother stood 
this for a few years, then concluded 
he could go to Heaven without so 
much expense, so asked and received 
his dismission from the Church. He 
said to me, '*I get along first-rate 
now; it don't cost me half as much 
as when I was a church-member. I 
pay two dollars to the Baptists, and 
two dollars to the Congregationalists, 
and get along easy now.'* Think of 
such a poor, lean soul trying to get 
to Heaven on an emigrant-train. But 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED, 35 

a true Christian will desire to share 
the burdens of the Church. It will 
be pleasant to call upon him for help, 
he gives so heartily and cheerfully. 
''He loveth a cheerful giver." 

Other Organizations. 

If he joins any other organization, 
and its meeting occurs at the same 
time of a regular prayer-meeting, he 
will say to its members, ''I shall not 
be with you to-night, it is our regular 
prayer - meeting." '' Prayer - meeting," 
they say, ''what is that to our organ- 
ization ! " He replies, " I love our or- 
ganization. I am one of you, and one 
with you, heart and hand, but I do not 
love it as I do the Church. If either 



36 SERMON, 



must be neglected, everything else be- 
fore the Church. I shall always be with 
you when it does not interfere with 
the appointments of the Church. I love 
the Church more than anything else/* 

Speak Tenderly. 

If he sees faults, or something he 
thinks is wrong in the Church, he 
will speak tenderly about it. It will 
grieve him. He will weep over it, 
but yet he will speak of it with great 
tenderness. Love to Christ's Church 
will cover a multitude of faults. 

Everything will appear differently to 
us if our hearts are filled with warm 
love to the people and cause of God. 
I will give an illustration : In a rer- 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 37 

tain town, after commencing a union 
meeting, I learned that there had 
been a division in the Baptist church, 
so serious that one of the deacons, 
and several of the prominent mem- 
bers, had left, determined not to walk 
with them any more. Just as I was 
closing the meeting one evening, with 
a large congregation present, one of 
these members asked me in great 
earnestness to request the congrega- 
tion to wait, — that he desired to give 
the Baptist church a ''blowing up." 
I asked him if he would not defer 
it, as it would be an injury to our 
meetings. He replied, ''I will do it 
to please you, but they deserve it." 
A few nights after this, his uncon- 



38 SERMON. 



verted wife was kneeling for prayers. 
I hesitated to ask him to pray, know- 
ing that a man could not pray as he 
ought, who felt and talked like that. 
I finally asked him to pray for her, 
thinking his religion might be covered, 
as our fathers used to cover a knot, 
or Uve coal, in ashes to keep fiie, be- 
fore matches were invented. The 
prayer had the effect to open a draft 
to the old fire of love in his heart. 
His wife was converted, his heart 
became warm with love to the 
Church. Before the meetings closed, 
he came to me and said, ''I have 
been thinking about that matter of 
giving the Baptist church a * blowing 
up,' and have concluded to come back 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 39 

to the church if they will take me, 
and say nothing about their wrong 
doing." The whole thing appeared 
different to him as soon as he could 
say, ''I prefer Jerusalem above my 
chief joy/' 

Christians look, and feel, and speak 
differently when their hearts glow with 
love to Christ and His people. *' Ex- 
cept a man has the spirit of Christ, 
he is none of His.'* This is the 
spirit of great tenderness. 

His Last Will. 

With this love in his heart, he 
will remember the Church in some of 
her wants in his last will and testa- 
ment, although it is much better to 



40 ' SERMON, 



give all we can spare while living. 
But if we have something left, we 
shall not forget the Church in our 
wills. 

Christ made His will in reference 
to His mother, a few hours before 
His death. Although the nails were 
in His hands and feet, seeing His 
mother before Him, and John stand- 
ing near by, He asked John if he 
was willing to take care of His 
mother after His death, inquiring of 
her at the same time if it would be 
agreeable for her to make her home 
with John. The words of Christ are 
these, — John 19 : 26, 27 : " Woman ! 
behold thy son"; and to John, "Be- 
hold thy mother." 



THE CHURCH PREFERRED. 4^ 



The meaning of these words was 
so well understood by John and Mary, 
both, that *'from that hour that dis- 
ciple took her unto his own home." 
Christ could not die until he had in 
His last will provided for His mother. 
Have any of you written your last 
will and testament ? Have you, like 
Christ, remembered your mother (the 
Church), in that will ? If not, will 
you alter that will to-morrow? Would 
it not be a painful thought (if pain 
could be in heaven), through the 
endless ages, that in disposing of our 
property we had forgotten the Church 
of Christ? 

Let me say, in conclusion, to all, 
may I come in memory and stand by 



42 SERMON, 



your side when you make your last 
will and testament, and whisper this 
text in your ear, — ^'I prefer Jerusalem 
above my chief joy?" 

Will you not, then, as you cause 
your will to be written, which disposes 
of your property, remember the Church 
in some of her wants, with such a 
legacy that it will be pleasant to 
review when you are walking the 
golden streets? — a legacy through 
which you will say in the best pos- 
sible manner, ''I prefer Jerusalem 
above my chief joy/' Then it may, 
with propriety, be said of you, — "By 
it, he being dead yet speaketh." 

Amen. 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR. 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR. 



** Father, the hour is come." — John i^.j, 

T%X Q W evident it is, Christ knew his 
J©(, Father would understand Him ! 
He does not say, '^ Father, I have 
got into trouble down here. I have 
met a formidable and unexpected diffi- 
culty in my mediatorial work, — some- 
thing we had not arranged for." 
Nothing of the kind; but, *' Father, 
the hour we talked about long before 
we made the first angel ; that hour 



46 SERMON, 



when I was to bear the sins of my 
people in my own body on the tree ; 
the hour around which was to gather 
all the great events in my mediatorial 
work, and all to depend upon its 
results ; at last I have reached the 
important hour/* 

The word hour, in this passage, 
does not mean sixty minutes of time, 
but a crisis or point in Christ's media- 
torial work, where all these events 
centered, and depended upon its 
results. This rendered it the most 
important hour in the world's history. 
I will speak of a few of these events, 
and show as clearly as I can how 
much importance can be crowded into 
a little point of time. 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR, 47 

Great Struggle. 
This was the long-anticipated hour 
of Christ's great struggle with the 
powers of darkness. It had been an 
ticipated for ages. No doubt Satan 
had looked forward to that hour with 
the greatest interest for thousands of 
years, and made all his arrangements 
to meet and overcome Christ if pos- 
sible, then. He knew, for it had 
been a matter of prophecy given to 
the world, that at that hour, in an 
important sense, the Father would 
forsake the Son, and the disciples 
flee away from Him, and that, too, 
when humanity was almost crushed 
beneath the load of our sins. It is 
written, ''The shepherd shall be smit- 



48 SERMON. 



ten, and the sheep scattered." Satan, 
no doubt, said, ^^That will be my time 
to defeat the plan of salvation. If 
ever I conquer and overcome the Son 
of God, I must do it at that hour." 
Satan has often made great mistakes, 
and I am not sure but he had strong 
hopes of defeating the whole plan of 
redemption at that hour. 

That I am right in this suggestion, 
go with me in thought to the Garden 
and mark the circumstances. As the 
fearful struggle drew near, Christ 
called for watchers. Leaving the most 
of the disciples in one part of the 
Garden, He took Peter, James, and 
John to another part, to act as 
watchers, telling them at the same 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR. 49 

time that His soul was in such agony 
as takes life. O, what an hour ! 
And what an experience for Jesus ! 
He did not ask to be saved from 
Calvary; He came into the world to 
go to Calvary ; but, sustained that He 
might reach Calvary alive, He must 
be Divinely sustained, or die in the 
Garden, and a dead Christ be nailed 
to the Cross. 

We are told that an "angel ap- 
peared, strengthening Him.*' This was 
what He wanted, and what He prayed 
for and received. With this needed 
strength He was ready to go to the 
Cross and die. Going forth He met 
Judas, with his soldiers and clubs, 
and said to him, '* Judas, you do not 



so SERMON, 



need soldiers or clubs. This is your 
hour. I am at your disposal now.*' 
The scene was awfully grand ; so 
much so, that the soldiers went back- 
ward and fell to the ground, but ral- 
lied again and led Him to the Cross, 
and nailed Him to it. 

What an hour was this to Christ, the 
Lord of Lords and King of Kings. 
With the nails in His hands and 
feet, His disciples fled away, and His 
Father's face hidden from Him. The 
bitterest ingredient in this cup of suf- 
fering was the hiding of His Father's 
face. This was the red cup of Divine 
wrath poured into the bosom of the 
Son. O, how terrible!- ''My God! My 
God! why hast Thou forsaken me?" 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR. 5^ 

Angels had never seen anything 
like this. They had seen legions of 
their brethren put in chains and 
hurled over the battlements of Heaven, 
the destruction of the old world, and 
Sodom and Gomorrah destroyed by 
fire, but had never seen such terri- 
ble wrath as this. 

After calling for drink, and vinegar 
mingled with gall had been put to 
His lips, He cried, '' It is finished,** 
and gave up the ghost. This ended 
the great struggle with the powers of 
darkness. The long-anticipated hour 
was now passed. 

Open Door. 

At that hour it was to be deter- 
mined whether the door of hope, 



$2 SERMON. 



opened to the world through the 
promise of Christ, should be kept 
open through the triumph of Christ. 
Suppose a failure on the part of 
Christ (we have a right to a suppo- 
sition), and that Satan had kept Christ 
in the grave, as he evidently meant 
to do, beyond the appointed time ? 
Suppose Sunday morning had come, 
and Christ was still in the grave ? 
That he had not been a match for the 
formidable difficulties connected with 
this part of the work of redemption? 
What would have been the announce- 
ment made in the Christian pulpits in 
and about Jerusalem ? Would not every 
pulpit been draped in deep mourn- 
ing, and every minister have cried, 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR, 53 

"All is lost! All is lost! The door 
of hope, opened to the world through 
the promise of Christ, is forever 
closed through the failure of Christ." 
But, thanks be to God, all was safe 
in the hand of the Mediator. No 
such announcement was made. It was 
there He led the captive devil in 
chains, and spoiled principalities and 
powers, and made a show of them 
openly, triumphing over them in it. 

"The powers of darkness leagued in vain 
To bind His soul in death; 
He shook their kingdom when He fell, 
With His expiring breath." 

Connecting Link. 
That hour also formed the grand 
connecting link between the old and 



54 SERMON, 



new dispensations. The priesthood 
under the Law ended at the Cross, 
and the Gospel dispensation com- 
menced there. On the one side of 
the Cross stood the ministers of the 
Law, ready to offer a turtle-dove, or 
a young pigeon, or a lamb, upon a 
Jewish altar, and on the other the 
twelve apostles, ready to go forth 
with their message of salvation; — the 
one to be dismissed, and the other 
to be commissioned. At that hour 
Christ did practically say to the priest- 
hood under the Law, " You have 
finished your ministry ; you have done 
it well, and you are dismissed from 
the priesthood ; and you are dismissed 
forever. The Law has been a schooU 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR, 55 

master to lead the world to me, and 
here I am, the great Antitype to whom 
these types and shadows have been 
steadily pointing for ages. ' I am He 
that should come.' No more blood 
upon Jewish altars ; no more slain 
beasts or birds for sacrifice." 

Thus ended the old dispensation. 
Jesus then turning to the twelve 
apostles said, "Go ye into all the 
world and preach the Gospel to every 
creature. He that believeth and is 
baptised, shall be saved ; and he that 
believeth not shall be damned." 

The Cross was the link that joined 
the two dispensations together. The 
one could not be perfect without the 
other. A long line of saints had 



56 SERMON. 



"died in faith, not having received 
the promises, but had seen them afar 
off and embraced them, God having 
provided some better thing for us, that 
they without us should not be made 
perfect/' The Old Testament re- 
quires the New, and the New the Old. 
Neither is perfect without the other. 
If we were to give an intelligent 
heathen the Old or New Testament, 
he would soon ask for the other part 
of the book. The Cross was the 
golden link that united them. So that 
we can sing with full hearts, around 
the Cross, — 

"Love's redeeming work is done, 
Fought the fight, the battle won 
Lo 1 our Sun's eclipse is o 'er, 
Lo ! He sets in blood no more." 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR. 57 

Future Happiness. 
One more event depended on the 
result of that hour. This I will speak 
of with great reverence and humility, 
but I so understand the plan of re- 
demption. The future happiness of 
the millions who were that day in 
heaven depended upon Christ's meet- 
ing the demands of the Law for them 
then. No atonement had been made 
for Abraham, and Moses, and the long 
line of saints then in heaven. Christ 
had not died a number of times, but 
once for all. They had been received 
into heaven on the strength of an 
atonement Christ promised to make, 
but had not yet made it. Christ had 
entered into a covenant with the 



58 SERMON, 



Father, that when the Law demanded 
satisfaction He would render it; that 
He would suffer, — the just for the 
unjust. That hour had now come; 
Christ must now, if ever, become the 
end of the Law for righteousness ; not 
only for every one who should believe 
on Him, but for all who had believed 
on Him. 

No doubt this great truth was well 
understood by the redeemed in heaven, 
— that Christ was that day to die for 
them, and that their future happiness 
depended on Christ's meeting every 
claim the perfect Law of God had ever 
held against them, and doing it that 
day. O, what an exceptional day 
that was in heaven! Y\o such day 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR. 59 

was ever experienced there. Two of 
their number, — Moses, the great law- 
giver, and EHjah, the Old Testament's 
greatest prophet, — were sent to inquire 
of Jesus (so I think), if He was going 
to be able to carry it through. We 
get some idea of the object of their 
mission, by a few words overheard by 
the three disciples on the Mount of 
Transfiguration. They heard Moses 
and Elijah speak to Jesus of the de- 
cease (that is, the death) that he 
should accomplish at Jerusalem. The 
object of their visit, then, was some- 
thing in reference to His death that 
deeply interested all the heavenly ones. 
What an intense interest must have 
been felt to hear the report of these 



60 SERMON. 



two men on their return! No day or 
hour like this was ever known in 
heaven. They could look on and wit- 
ness the agony of Christ, but what 
could they do ? Christ must tread the 
wine-press of His Father^s wrath alone. 
I think no song was heard, nor harp- 
string touched in heaven, from Friday 
noon until Sunday morning. We are 
told that there was silence in heaven 
for a little space. Could anything be 
more suitable than for all heaven to 
suspend their songs and hold in 
silence their golden harps, when Christ 
went to the Cross for them? They 
knew, about noon, that the nails had 
entered Christ's hands and feet, and 
no doubt heard His groans as He cried 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR, 6l 

out: ''My God! My God! Why hast 
thou forsaken me?" They then un- 
derstood more fully than ever before 
what atonement meant, and what a 
dreadful thing sin is. 

Sometime in the afternoon, Christ, 
after saying "I thirst," and vinegar, 
mingled with gall had been held to 
His lips, cried, ''It is finished," and 
gave up the ghost. What tidings were 
to reach heaven that evening.^ — "Jesus 
is dead! Jesus is dead!" Some of us 
remember the sadness and gloom that 
rested on us when, just before mid- 
night, the bells rang out over this 
and other lands, "James A. Garfield 
is dead!" The whole country seemed 
draped in deep mourning. But how 



62 SERMON. 



must it have sounded in heaven to 
hear angels and archangels, with mil- 
lions of saints around the throne, 
saying, '' Jesus is dead ! Jesus is dead ! '' 
The body was placed in a sepul- 
chre Friday evening, as we reckon 
the days of the week. All night 
Friday night, and all day and night 
Saturday, Jesus was in the sweet 
repose of the grave. What a topic 
of conversation all this time in heaven 
was the resurrection of that body ! 
That was to be the crowning act of 
redemption.^ Early Sunday morning the 
Father sent one of the angels to 
roll the stone from the sepulchre. 
Not to assist in raising Christ from 
the dead ; that must be His own act. 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR, 63 

What thoughts must have filled the 
mind of that angel, as he folded his 
wings and sat down on that stone, in 
utter helplessness, so far as raising 
that body was concerned ! Think of 
millions of the bright ones looking 
upon that dead form, lying in that 
open sepulchre, knowing, as they did, 
that they must come out of heaven 
unless that body rose from the dead 
that very morning. Yet they could 
do nothing towards it. Could an hour 
be crowded with more importance to 
the heavenly ones } How many times 
during those three days must the 
question have been asked, ^*Will He 
rise } Will He rise } Will He break 
the bars of death? Will He rob the 



64 SERMON. 



grave of its victory, so that our bod- 
ies that are sleeping in their dusty 
beds will rise in the morning of that 
great day, when the trumpet shall 
sound ?*' 

But, thanks be to God and the 
Lamb, forever. While the harps of 
gold were silent, and the angel sat 
on the stone at the sepulchre, and 
millions of smiling eyes were bending 
over the battlements of glory, all 
waiting the results of that hour, Christ 
walked out of the sepulchre in the 
presence of heaven and earth, as if 
He had risen from a sweet night's 
repose. There He stood, the Con- 
queror of earth and hell, holding the 
keys of life and death. Oh, the lean- 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR. 65 

ness of language to describe the scene 
that followed in heaven around the 
throne of God that morning. Never 
did angels or men know such an hour. 
This was the hour of victory for Him- 
self and His people. ''He lives! He 
lives!'* was no doubt heard all over 
the heavenly city. ''Heaven is ours 
forever. Take your golden harps, and 
sing your sweetest songs. 'Glory to 
the Lamb ! Glory to the Lamb ! * 
Our sins are washed away, not only 
by the blood, but by the resurrection 
of the Lamb.'' 

"He broke the bars of death, 
Which none e'er broke before ; 

And rose in conquering majesty, 
To stoop to death no more." 



66 SERMON-. 



Here the angels met Him to accom- 
pany Him to His Father's right hand 
in heaven. Yet He remained for forty 
days before He was '^received up into 
glory," to remove all doubt about His 
resurrection, and arrange the affairs 
of His kingdom on earth. How long 
these forty days must have seemi^d 
to the heavenly ones before they 
could see and welcome Him back, 
after such a mission and such a 
victory! But the hour came at last 
for Him to go up to His throne 
above. This was to be another unu& 
ual day in heaven, — a day of great 
joy among all the heavenly hosts. 

"They brought His chariot from the skies, 
To bear Him to His throne ; 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR. 6/ 

Clapped their glad wings and cried, 
The glorious work is done." 

Is it possible for language to de- 
scribe His entrance through the gates 
of pearl? Is it too much to believe 
that all heaven went out to meet 
Him, and came in with Him, crying 
out as they enter: ''Lift your heads, 
O ye gates, and be ye lift up, ye 
everlasting doors, and the King of 
Glory shall come in." ''Who is this 
King of Glory.?" "The Lord of Hosts, 
He is the King of Glory." 

Great and brave men have had 
receptions on earth, but what a recep- 
tion Christ must have had when He 
returned victorious from earth, to be 
crowned "King of Glory!" With 



68 SERMON. 



what rapture and delight they sang, as 
the crown was placed upon His head, 

" Crown Him ! Crown Him ! 
Crowns become the victors* brow." 

Well might the Saviour say, when 
He uttered this text: '* Father, the 
hour is come"; not an hour of great 
importance is come, but the hour 
that swallows up all other hours since 
time began in its far-reaching results, — 
reaching back through the long list 
of ages, and meeting every demand 
the perfect law of God had ever held 
against those who had believed in a 
promised Saviour, and put their trust 
in him, and forward in its saving 
power to all who should believe on 
Christ through their wor4 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR, 69 

Thus Christ ''died once for all." 
O, the importance that connected itself 
with that point in the mediatorial 
work of our Redeemer ! 

In the light of this single thought, 
let me show, as clearly as possible, 
that what was true of Christ at that 
crisis in His work, has been true of 
nations and individuals in all ages of 
the world. 

A Crisis. 

A crisis is reached, and at that 
.point, victory or defeat, life or death, 
follows. Our first parents reached 
such a point. No doubt they had 
often passed that forbidden tree, with 
no thought or wish to touch it. But 
at last the crisis came, and life or 



70 SERMON. 



death must follow the decision of an 
hour. It is evident that our mother, 
Eve, while looking the forbidden tree 
carefully over, felt, at first, a gentle 
desire come over her to taste of the 
forbidden fruit, yet had no idea of 
doing it. But the desire increased 
upon her until she reached such a 
crisis, that upon the one action of 
that woman's will hung the destiny 
of this world. O, if she had hurried 
away, saying, '' Life ! Life ! Eternal 
Life!'' She was as yet unstained by - 
sin, and in a state to walk and talk 
with God as we walk and talk with 
each other. The question in her 
mind seemed to be, ^' Shall I taste 
of it and run the risk of dying, or 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR, 7 1 

refuse and be safe?" She was able to 
stand, yet free to fall. O, what an 
hour in the history of this world ! 
But the evil prevailed. She said, ^'I 
will taste of it." The deed was done. 
She fell, and in that fall all our 
blood was poisoned, and this world 
became a great grave-yard. Not one of 
her unborn children could be saved 
without the death of the Son of God 
upon the Cross. How much impor- 
tance attached itself to that single act ! 

The Signers. 

So it was with the signers of the 
Declaration of Independence. In that 
old hall stood a table with that mem- 
orable document on it ; a sober look- 



T2 SERMON, 



looking class of men about it, with 
the question before them, ''Shall we 
sign it, and if need be, seal it with 
our blood?" The decision was made. 
They signed it, and thus this nation 
was born. The decisive hour came, 
and God had raised up men for that 
hour. And so, for more than a cen- 
tury, when in our history we have 
reached a crisis, there have been 
men for the crisis. We still live. 
'^The government is still safe.'' 

With Individuals. 
It is the same with individual respon- 
sibility. We reach a point in our lives 

" That marks the destiny of man 
For glory or despair." 

We hear the calls and warnings of 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR, 73 

the Gospel, and reject them, and yet 
we may be saved. This may be re- 
peated many times, and it not be too 
late. But an hour is reached at last 
when we cannot say ^'No," once more, 
and be saved. The decision then is 
final. The destiny of the soul is then 
fixed forever. 

"There is a line by us unseen 

That crosses every path, 
The hidden boundary between 

God's patience and His wrath. 

That fearful line may be near your 
feet, or may have been already crossed. 
"My Spirit shall not always strive with 
man." How dangerous to resist His 
strivings ! Christ said to Jerusalem, '' O 
that thou hadst known, even thou, at 



74 SERMON, 



least, in this, thy day, the things that 
belong unto thy peace. But now they 
are hid from thine eyes." Too late! 
Too late! How dreadful the thought, 
that we may find out that we are 
lost when it is too late to be saved. 

A young lady deeply convicted of 
her sins, was urged to accept Christ 
at once, but she hesitated, and finally 
decided to attend one more ball before 
becoming a Christian. She went to 
the ball, but the Spirit left her. Not 
long after, she went into a decline, 
and died without hope. ''I called; ye 
refused." The stretched-out, bleeding 
hand refused ' 

Am I not addressing those who 
have said "No, no," to the calls of the 



THE IMPORTANT HOUR. 75 

Gospel from your earliest moment ? 
Has not Christ been rejected every 
day of your lives ? Do you know cer- 
tainly this is not the hour of final 
decision ? The unseen line may be 
crossed this hour. O, the importance 
of the decision you make now ! Does 
not the Holy Spirit whisper, ''The 
hour is come"? Do not say, then, 
''Go thy way for this time," lest it 
should prove to be the last time you 
can say "No," and be saved. 

When the crisis came Christ met it 
and triumphed over it. Will yot not 
do the same .'^ "I have set life and 
death before you, therefore choose 
life." Will you not now silentl}^ but 
solemnly say, putting your veracity and 



76 SERMON. 



honor in the decision, '^ Jesus, I ac- 
cept Thee as my Saviour, and will 
serve Thee from this hour ; whether 
my path is light or dark, rough or 
smooth, still I will obey and serve 
Thee the remainder of miy days"? 

May Jesus give you strength and 
grace to trust Him and carry out 
this vow, and I be permitted to meet 
you in heaven and hear you say, 
*'That was the hour of decision and 
victory/' 

*^The grace of our Lord Jesus 
Christ be with you all." 

Amen, 



By Rev. A. B. EARLE, D. D. 



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